This summer institute will examine the transformation of the lands between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River from “Indian Country” to “U.S. territory,” from North to South, between 1812 and 1833. The Newberry Library has long been in the forefront of the study of Native America, in both its collections and sponsored scholarship, and it is the perfect place to host an institute that bridges the divide between American Indian history and traditional narratives of U.S. history by exploring the borderlands and backcountry of the trans-Appalachian west.

Participating teachers and educational professionals will benefit not only by working with top-flight scholars and the resources available at the Newberry Library, and in other archives and museums in the Chicago area, but also by providing an opportunity to investigate more deeply an all-too-often overlooked topic in American history—the cultural, political, social, and economic interactions among the diverse groups of people who occupied and travelled through Indian Country during the era of the Early Republic.

Application Instructions

Completed applications should be submitted to the project director and should be postmarked no later than March 1, 2012. Successful applicants will be notified of their selection on April 2, 2012and they will have until Friday, April 6 to accept or decline the offer. All will receive a stipend of $3,300, an amount determined by the NEH. Stipends are intended to help cover travel expenses to and from the project location, books and other research expenses, and living expenses for the period spent in residence.

Applicants are asked to complete the Application Cover Sheet online at the NEH’s website. Please mail hard copies of all other required materials (three copies each of the cover sheet, a résumé, and an application essay, along with two letters of recommendation) to the D’Arcy McNickle Center.

Before you apply, please read the Institute Description (Letter from the Directors) and the NEH Participant Application Instructions. Applicants are responsible for reading the institute description and the application guidelines prior to submitting an application.

To request that the institute description and application guidelines and materials be sent to you, contact:D’Arcy McNickle Center The Newberry Library60 W Walton St, Chicago, IL 60610

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily reflect those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

This institute is supported by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, an independent federal agency. The Newberry is an independent library for research and reference in the humanities.